Folding stool



M. ANTONUK FOLDING STOOL June 18, 1929.4

2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed March 2'7J 1928 l hay /rzafzz/v,

June 18, 1929. M, ANTONUK 1.717.908

FOLDING STOOL Filed'Maroh 27, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 QC??? 2. I ff Inventor Patented June 18, 1929.

UNITED STATES MAKARY ANTGNUK,

or NEW Yonx, N. Y.

FOLDING STOOL.

Application filed March 27, 1928.

The present invention relates to improvements in folding stools and has for its principal object to provide a stool which can be folded into a small space and carried about, and one which can be quiclrly and easily opened and will be capable of sustaining considerable weight after being properly opened and set up for use.

Another important object of the invention Vis to provide a folding stool which includes means for rendering the seat portion taut, additional means being provided for locle ing the folding legsy in an operative position so that the stool will not accidentally collapse when set up or assembled for use.

A still further object is to provide a folding stool wherein the seat is reinforced at its corners, the reinforced corners being provided with 'means for detachable engagement with the upper ends of the folding arms to maintain the seat in position for use.

A still further object of the invention is to piovide a folding stool of the above mentioned character which is simple in construcf tion, inexpensive. strong and durable and further well adapted to the purpose for which it is designed.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent during the course of the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

ln the accompanying drawings forming iart of this application and in which like numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the folding stool embodying my invention showing' the same set up ready for use.

Figure 2 is a transverse section taken approximately on the line 2 2 of Figure 1 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 3 is a sectional 'view taken approximately on the line 33 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 isa similar section taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a detail sectional view through one of the reinforced corners of the seat showing the manner in which the saine is secured to the adjacent arm.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary bottom plan view of one of the corner portions of the seat, and

Figure 7 is an elevational view of the stool showing the same folded, the seat being illusvtrated fragmentarily.

In the drawings wherein for the purpose Serial No. 265,199.

of illustration is shown the preferred embodiment of my invention, the numeral l designates generally my improved folding stool, the saine coii'iprising a central casting 2. This casting is so constructed as to afford diainetrically opposed pairs of channels that extend longitudinally of the casting, each of these channels being denoted by the numeral 3.

As clearly illustrated in Figure 4, a eentral rectangular shaped frame 4, is formed at the upper portion of the casting and the spaced portions of the channel 3 which extend radially with respect to this frame 4 gradually diverge from the frame portion toward the lower end. A plurality of leg members are associated with the casting 2 and in the present instance, four legs are employed, each being constructed preferably of steel, although any other suitable material may be employed if desired. Each of the legs 5 is formed at its upper end with an offset portion 6 that is capable of slidable and pivotal movement between the sides of the respective channels 3 formed in the casting 2, and to this end the opposite sides of the intermediate portion of each channel are formed with longitudinally extending registering slots 7 throughwhich is disposed a transverse pin 8 that extends through the upper extremity of the offset portion 6 of each leg. A hook 9 is formed at the juncture of each leg member with its offset portion on the under side thereof and the hook is disposed in parallel spaced relation with respect to the offset portion for a purpose to be presently described. An axial coil spring 10 is arranged in each channel 3 directly below the upper end portion thereof on a transverse pin 11, one of the end portions of each axial spring engaging with the base portion of the respective channels, while the other end portion of said spring is of a greater length than the first mentioned end, and as is more clearly ,illustrated in Figure 4 of the drawings, this elongated end portion 12 extends into a suitable socket 13 provided in the outer face of the upper' portion of each of the folding leg members for the purpose of normally holding the leg members in their up* wardly folded position. The outer face of the offset portion 6 of each leg member is grooved to accommodate this end portion 12 of the respective axial spring 10. The folding stool further comprehends the provision of a plurality of folding arms, each of which is denoted by the numeral 14 and in the present end of the respective arms 14 in the manner as more clearly illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawings. In this manner the arms 14 will swing downwardly between the adjacent leg members or rather the leg members will 1 swing upwardly between the adjacent arms during the folding of the stool as will also be hereinafter' more fully described.

The folding stool also includes the provi- Vsion of a flexible seat 16 that may be constructed of canvas or leather, and the seat is preferably of rectangular shape.l Each corner of the flexible seat is reinforced by having a metallic plate 17 disposed between the laminations of the seat. A leather corner piece 18 is disposed over the edges of each corner of the scat and an additional metallic plate k19 is disposed against the under side of the seat at each corner and suitable fastening means 2() extends through the reinforcing elements in the manner as clearly shown in Figure V5. 1t will also be observed from this particular figure that the outer edge of the inner metallic plate 17 is bent downwardly whereby a rolled edge will be formed at each corner of the seat. Carried by the bottom metallic plate 19 is an angularly disposed pin 21 which is adapted to enter through a suitable opening provided in the closed upper end of each of the pivoted arms 14 whereby the seat will be secured to the upper ends of the respective arms when the stool is to be assembled for use, and the pins snugly fit in the sockets provided therefor in the upper ends of the arms. Y One corner of the flexible seat is permanently attached to the adjacent leg member by means of a short length of chain shown at 22 so that when the seat is removed from engagement with the upper ends of the legs to permit of the folding of the stool the chain will retain the flexible seat in a suspended manner to one of the arms so that the seat will not become separated from the remaining portion of the stool. Forming a salient part of the present invention is a means for rendering the seat 16 taut and to this end, I provide the spindle 23 that is vertically slidable through the frame 4 and the lower portion of the casting 2. The intermediate portion of the spindle is threaded as indicated at 24 with reference more particularly to Figures 3 and 4 of the drawings for a purpose to be presently described. The upper end of the spindle is gradually tapered and is secured to a cruciform shaped unit 25, each of thearms` of the cruciform shaped unit being of channel shape inv end elevation, and a link 26 affords an operative connection between the intermediate portion of each of the pivoted arms 14 and the respective arms of the cruciform shaped unit 25 as disclosed more clearly in Figure 1 of the drawings. A handle 26 is associated with the lower end ofthe vertically movable spindle 23. Cooperating with the threaded intermediate portion 24 of this vertically movable spindle are the diametrically opposed levers 27 and 28, respectively. Each of these levers is pivotcd adjacent its lower end between the leg receiving` channels as at 29. The lower end of each lever is formed with an enlarged head 30, and the inner face of each of these heads is formed with threads complementary to the threads 24, the threads formed on each head being shown at V31 in Figure 3. The upper ends of these pivoted levers form handles and suitable springs 32 which are secured at their upper ends between the channels 3 have their lower ends engaging with the inner opposed faces of the pivoted levers for urging the toothed heads into engagement with the threaded portion 24 of the vertically movable spindle. `When the parts are arranged as shown in Figure 7 of the drawings, the stool is folded into small compass andthe seat 16 may be wrapped around the interlitting legs and arms so that the stool when folded may be stored away in any desirable place without occupying much space.

NVhenever it is desired to use the stool, the seat 16 is unwrapped from around the legs and arms. Each of the legs is then moved downwardly in its respective channel by sliding the pin 8 in the longitudinalrslots provided therefor in the opposite sides of each channel 3. YVhen the pin has reached its lowermost position in said slots, the leg is then swung inwardly so that the offset portion 6 will be confined between the sides of the channel and the foot 9 will be disposed below the lower edge of the face portion of said channel. The leg member is then slid upwardly so that the foot 9 will engage with the lower edge of the base portion of the channel in the manner as clearlyshown in Figure 4 and the leg will then be positively secured in position. Each of the legs is operated in this manner, and when assembled the four legs will be disposed 1n diverging relation with respectto the casting 2 and the feet 33 formed on the lower end of the legs will rest on the ground as shown in Figure 1. The di ametrically opposed levers 27 and 28 are then grasped at the handle portion thereof and pushed inwardly to disengage the threaded head with respect to the spindle 23. The handle 26 on the lower end of the spindle is then pulled downwardly to move the spindle downwardly through the casting and this will result in the links 26 being moved to a horizontal position so as to force the pivoted arms 14 outwardly. After the pins 21 have been inserted in the upper ends of the respect-ive arms, the seat 16 may bc made taut by rotating the spindle in a clockwise direction and the threaded heads 30 which are held in en gagement with the threaded portion 24: of the spindle 23 by the action of the spring 32 will cause the arms 14 to move outwardly as is readily obvious from the construction of the spindle and the connecting links 2G that are associated with the upper end of the spindle and the pivoted arms. When the seat is assembled in the manner as shown in Figure 1, the same is ready for use and will provide a strong and durable structure that will be capable of supporting a considerable amount of weight. A stool of the above mentioned character can be used for camping purposes or for viewing parades, and will at all times be ready for assembly or disassembly without requiring the use of any tools.

If desired, a foldable back may be provided for the seat to add to the comfort of the user.

A folding stool of the above mentioned character can be manufactured at a very low cost and due to the arrangement of the parts, there will be no danger of the seat collapsing while in use.

While I have shown the preferred embodiment of my invention it is to be understood that minor changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

I-Iaving thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a folding stool, a central unit, a plurality of legs pivotally and slidably connected at their upper ends to the lower portion of the unit, hooks carried by the pivoted upper ends of the legs for cooperation with said unit to lock the legs in an open extended position, a flexible seat and means extending upwardly from said unit to support the seat in position for use, said means comprising a plurality of arms pivoted at their lower ends to the upper portion of the unit, a vertically movable spindle extending through said unit, links connecting the upper end of the spindle to the intermediate portions of the respective arms for moving said arms simultaneously with the vertical movement of the spindle, cooperating` means between the unit and the spindle for making the flexible seat taut, said last mentioned means comprising a pair of diametrically opposed pivoted levers mounted on the unit, thread carrying heads formed on the inner ends of the levers, the intermediate portion of the spindle being threaded for cooperation with the threaded heads, and resilient means associated with the outer ends of the levers for holding the threaded heads normally in engagement with the threaded portion of the spindle.

2. In a folding stool, a central unit, supporting legs operatively connected at their upper ends to said unit and diverging downwardly therefrom, arms pivoted at their lower ends to the upper portion of the unit, a flexible seat supported by the upper ends of the arms, a vertically movable and rotatable spindle extending through the unit, links operatively connecting the upper end of the spindle with the intermediate portions of the respective arms for movingsaid arms simultaneously with the vertical movement of the spindle, and cooperating means between the unit and the spindle for maintaining the flex* ible seat taut comprising opposed pivoted levers mounted on the unit, threaded heads formed on the levers, the intermediate portion of the spindle being threaded, resilient means associated with the levers for maintaining the threaded heads in engagement with the threaded portion of the spindle and an actuating handle on the lower end of the spindle for turning and raising and lowering the same.

In testimony whereof I aiix my signature.

MAKARY ANTONUK. 

